I tried
by Virgo girl 14
Summary: Young Leela decided to make a run for it with Peri, but not everything works out as planned. Sounds better than it is, I promise.


**I tried...**

Mrs Campbell stood up from her arm chair, flicking the television on to mute as she heard a frantic knocking at her front door late one dark, rainy evening. "Somebody better have a reasonable excuse for disturbing my quiet night in..." she muttered, leaving the living room to answer the door. On the doorstep stood a young pretty thing holding a baby in her arms, both completely soaked through, and the girl looked to be crying.

She recognised the girl as her own boy Cameron's girlfriend, Leela Lomax. Or rather ex, now that he was in prison.

"Please... you have to help me..." the young girl begged.

"Come in with that wean out of the damn rain before you both catch your death!" Mrs Campbell dragged her inside. The girl looked to be no older than fourteen or fifteen years old. "Go on, get that bairn by the fire in there, warm up, and then you can tell me what on earth is going on."

Leela did as she was told and ducked into the living room, sitting herself with her daughter by the fire, still sobbing heartbrokenly.

Mrs Campbell came back in five minutes later with a cup of tea for Leela, and set it down on the table next to her. "Now, are you going to give me an explanation, lass?"

"I... I never meant to keep Cam in the dark..." Leela sobbed. "But mum found out and she went beserk... And I was made to stay home the entire time and I was never allowed to visit my sister in hospital either... Mum's trying to ake my baby away from me..."

"I'm sure she's not..." The older woman looked on the young girl with a protective air. She was so young, so vulnerable, so frightened.

"She is! She is!" Leela cried desperately, clutching Peri closer to her. "Peri cries for me, I know she does... but mum tells me to stay away from her... I'm not her mum, I'm her sister... I gave birth to her six months ago, I can't just stay away!"

"You can't run away with her either, love. I know it must be so hard for you, and as much as you want to you can't, you'll only get yourself into trouble. Now give her here, and you drink your tea. I want to say hello to my granddaughter." She looked at her with a kind smile.

Leela nodded as she listened to her. She was right and she knew it. But she so desperately wanted to be Peri's mum, and she didn't know how hard she would take it until she had to hand her over. She then looked up with wide eyes for a moment, and then nodded once more, knowing she could trust her, holding baby Peri out to her, and then took her cup of tea when she was taken away.

Once the tea was drunk, and Peri safely nestled back in Leela's arms fast asleep, the two started talking once more until there was a knock followed by a series of bangs at the door and shouts of Leela's name. The older woman stood, assuring Leela that everything would be okay, and she left to go and answer the door. "Sam. What an _un_pleasant surprise." she said dryly.

"Where's Leela. I know she's in there, she's kidnapped my daughter! Her own sister!"

"But she's not yours, Sam."

"I don't know what kind of poison she's been telling you, but that baby is my daughter."

"The poor girl just wants to be a mum, Sam. Let her and the bairn be!"

"She gave up the right to be that girl's mum the day she handed her over. It can't have been that tough for her." Sam spat, pushing past her and into the living room. "You, home, now."

Leela jumped up, backing away, holding Peri protectively to her chest. "Please, just leave us!" she begged. "Please!"

"Leela stop this. You're not old enough to take on the responsibilty of being a mum. You're still in school. We agreed-"

"No! You agreed!" Leela cut her off harshly. "She's my daughter! I'm not giving her up!"

Sam sighed heavily, walked across the room and grabbed Leela by the arm, causing her to cry out and Peri wake up and start screaming. "See what you've done!" Sam snapped, snatching Peri off her and dragged Leela out into the hallway.

"Get your hands off the girl! You're scaring her and the bairn!" Mrs Campbell snapped, trying to free Leela, but Sam acted as though she was not there, or hadn't even heard her, and left the house, ordering Leela into the car while she sat in the front of the car, comforting te crying baby until she was fast asleep again, and fastened her into the car seat in the passenger side.

Leela knew it was over, for now at least as she watched her mother with _her _daughter. '_I'm sorry Per__i... I tried fighting for you... But I will never stop being there for you..._' she thought.

"We won't tell your father about this. He's not to know you disappeared, understood, Leela?" Sam watched her daughter nod in the rear view mirror and drove home.

A/N: I don't believe Leela would have just given Peri up just like that. I do believe Peri would have tried to fight for her, and didn't tell Peri what truly happened, because of Sam and Danny dying. But I do believe with how determined and everything that she is, she would have told Peri the truth had her parents not died, and how Danny was not as involved with that as Sam was. I saw that kind of manipulative quality in Sam the day Leela told Peri.


End file.
